Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) is a routing technique that uses label-based forwarding to simplify and accelerate data transmission. This approach facilitates greater network scalability and security, and is especially suitable for latency-sensitive traffic, or where quality of service (QoS) is needed for traffic prioritization.
MPLS operates between Layer 2 and Layer 3 of the OSI model and is compatible with both IPv4 and IPv6. It can carry various traffic types, including IP packets, Ethernet frames and Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET).
In practice, MPLS is primarily used to forward IP protocol data units and Virtual Private LAN Service (VPLS) Ethernet traffic. Its major applications include traffic engineering and MPLS-based VPNs.
When service providers deploy MPLS in their backbone infrastructure, they establish an IP MPLS network. This network serves as solid foundation for enterprise connectivity. Businesses can then use MPLS VPN services to connect offices, data centers, and cloud platforms with guaranteed performance and reliability.
To enhance network security and reduce latency, MPLS uses labels to segment customer traffic across different Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). This label-based separation ensures that each VPN remains logically isolated, even when multiple organizations share the same physical infrastructure.
There are, however, inherent security limitations with MPLS. While MPLS can be considered "private" in the sense that traffic paths are distinct for specific organizations, it doesn't provide encryption. MPLS does not inherently protect data confidentiality, and it is possible to intercept and read unencrypted packets along an MPLS path.
To achieve full privacy and data protection, encryption is needed. This is typically achieved with VPN or other security function above the MPLS layer. VPNs encrypt traffic between endpoints, ensuring that even if data is intercepted, it remains unreadable.
Despite this limitation, MPLS VPNs are widely used by service providers to deliver the foundations for secure, high-performance, and reliable connectivity.
The two main flavours of VPN are:
These extend Ethernet or other Layer 2 protocols across the MPLS backbone. They are ideal for organizations that want to maintain routing control and use MPLS as a transport layer.
These route IP traffic between different sites using MPLS, offering full Class of Service (CoS) and traffic engineering capabilities. Routing is managed by the service provider, making it easier for enterprises to scale and optimize their networks.
Both models offer a secure, scalable, and flexible way to connect global enterprises – including branch offices, data centers, or dedicated connections to the cloud.
MPLS VPNs also support advanced features, including traffic prioritization, failover, and bandwidth guarantees, making them ideal for mission-critical applications such as voice, video, and real-time data.
Despite being introduced in the 1990s, Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) remains a cornerstone of enterprise networking today. Its longevity is no accident – MPLS continues to deliver clear advantages that make it highly relevant in today’s hybrid and cloud-connected environments. Key benefits include:
1. Predictable performance
MPLS offers low latency, minimal jitter, and traffic prioritization, making it ideal for real-time applications such as voice, video conferencing, and mission-critical data. Unlike traditional IP routing, MPLS ensures that packets follow predefined paths, resulting in consistent and predictable performance.
2. Reliability
With features like fast reroute and built-in redundancy, MPLS provides high availability and quick recovery from network link or node failures. This makes it a trusted choice for organizations requiring uninterrupted connectivity.
3. Flexibility and adaptability
MPLS supports multiple service classes, allowing businesses to tailor network behaviour to specific application needs. It also adapts well to global network changes, such as frequent network management updates or regional expansion, making it ideal for dynamic enterprise environments.
4. Traffic segmentation for security
While MPLS does not encrypt data, it enhances security through label-based traffic separation. This logical isolation ensures that customer traffic remains private, even when sharing the same infrastructure. For true data confidentiality, MPLS is often paired with encryption-based services like VPNs.
5. Efficient network utilization
One of MPLS’s lesser-known strengths is its ability to pool spare bandwidth across links, optimizing overall network usage. This can delay costly infrastructure upgrades by making better use of existing capacity, especially valuable in high-growth scenarios.
Conclusion
MPLS may be a mature technology, but its combination of performance, reliability, and scalability continues to make it a strategic asset for service providers and enterprises alike. Whether supporting legacy systems or integrating with modern cloud architectures, MPLS remains a robust solution for building efficient and secure networks.
MPLS remains a highly relevant and strategic networking technology, especially for organizations that prioritize performance, reliability, and scalability. Its ability to deliver secure, low-latency, and redundant connectivity makes it a preferred choice for many use cases in different industries – from global enterprises and ISPs to hyperscalers and security-sensitive verticals like finance and government.
By simplifying complex WAN configurations and supporting dependable disaster recovery strategies, MPLS not only enhances operational efficiency but also ensures business continuity. In short, MPLS is not just a legacy solution, it continues to be a foundation of modern network architectures where quality of service and traffic control are critical.
Since both MPLS and SD-WAN are both primarily used for WAN network connectivity, it's useful to make a comparison.
As earlier, MPLS is a well-established WAN technology. It routes traffic using labels instead of IP addresses, for predictable performance, low latency, and high reliability.
Today, SD-WAN is often used to manage traffic across a combination of MPLS and cheaper public Internet links. Critical applications requiring high reliability can use the dedicated MPLS connection, while less important traffic is directed over the Internet to reduce costs.
| Characteristics | MPLS | SD-WAN |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | High and predictable | Variable - optimized by software |
| OSI layer | Layer 2-3 (often described as layer 2,5) | Layer 4 |
| Flexibility | Medium | High |
| Security | Private, less encryption and combined with VPN | Encrypted, fully integrated security |
| Cloud optimization | Poor | High |
| Common use cases | Legacy apps, global networks and critical traffic | Cloud apps and agile networks |
Ethernet over MPLS (EoMPLS) enables native Layer 2 Ethernet frame encapsulation and transport across a reliable MPLS backbone, ensuring deterministic performance, high availability, and operational simplicity. By leveraging MPLS’s inherent traffic engineering and fast reroute capabilities, EoMPLS delivers carrier-grade reliability and scalability.
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Transparent Ethernet bridging: Preserves MAC-layer transparency for seamless LAN extension across geographically distributed sites |
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Flexible service topologies: Supports point-to-point, point-to-multipoint, and any-to-any connectivity via Virtual Private LAN Services (VPLS), enabling dynamic service provisioning |
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Scalable architecture: Facilitates rapid service deployment with minimal configuration overhead, ideal for enterprise WAN, data center interconnect (DCI), and service provider environments |
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Quality of Service (QoS) and SLA enforcement: Integrates with MPLS QoS mechanisms to prioritize latency-sensitive traffic and enforce SLAs |
IP-VPN to enable faster, more secure, and simplified communication for distributed business locations powered by our global MPLS backbone. It consolidates multiple local area networks (LANs) into a single, private, and highly resilient virtual network, designed to meet evolving enterprise demands for performance, flexibility, and control.
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Topology flexibility: fully meshed or hub-and-spoke configurations to optimize traffic flow and network design per VPN instance |
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Multi-VRF Support: multiple Virtual Routing and Forwarding (VRF) instances for segmented services or departments, each with independent routing policies and configurations |
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Integrated CoS and QoS: Class of Service (CoS) is used for dividing customer’s traffic into classes based on importance and sensitivity, including classes for mission-critical applications, and QoS ensure consistent performance across all the traffic classes |
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Internet breakout: Combine VPN traffic and Internet traffic for local breakout, using the same access |
MPLS provides private, predictable connectivity across a provider’s backbone and is widely used for enterprise VPNs.
Yes. SD-WAN is an overlay technology that can utilize both MPLS and Internet connections as underlays, often in hybrid configurations.
MPLS is a technology that directs traffic, while VPN is a service that ensures secure communication between different sites. They are often combined to create an optimal customer solution.
